June 28, 2016

Altai


Altai

Name: Ekaterina Novikova

Age: 28

Profession: Journalist, photo-editor

City/Region: Altai Republic

How long have you been doing photography? What style or genre most interests you? 

I have been interested in photography since my childhood. It was my father who taught me how to use a camera. I tried to work as a photographer, but about five years ago once I got  a job proposal from a big Russian news agency and started my career as a photo editor there. But I still love to take pictures. I am deeply interested in documentary photography and photojournalism.

Can you give us a short description of your city? Where is it located? What is it famous for?

I took pictures of Altai republic while traveling there by car. Altai is considered to be one of the most beautiful Russian regions. It is situated far from Moscow, in Siberia. Traveling to Altai can be a fascinating journey. While traveling along the Chuysky road (one of the most beautiful roads in Russia) you see nature around you change from filelds to mountain passes and later to plains on the border with Mongolia. I spent some time near the village of Chemal, where I explored the famous Katun River. Now there are lots of hotels and guest houses on its banks, in the beautiful pine forests. Chemal  is a popular tourist place – many hiking trails and river trails begin there. Some people think that Altai is a very special place. Russian legends say that a mysterious land of White water (Belovodie) is hidden somewhere in the Altai Mountains. Many occultists, philosophers and scientists have tried to find it. They say that Belovodie is a land of freedom and happiness. Russian artist and painter Nikolay Roerich explored Altai and painted some of his beautiful landscapes there. They say that Roerich found Belovodie and understood the meaning of life. Now many people visit Altai to relax, to see beautiful Siberian nature and wildlife, to understand its customs and traditions.

What is something about your city that only locals would know?

While visiting the village of Chemal you may see a very unusual thing there: a ferris wheel. You don't often see such things in a small village hidden in the taiga. 

You may also buy very tasty and very cheap herbal and berry tea at the small market in Chemal. Lots of herbs and berries grow in the taiga, so it may be a very good present to bring back from Altai. 

Altai honey is well known throughout Russia. Now they produce honey with berries – it is fantastic!

Which places or sites are a must for someone to see if they visit your city?

Altai landscapes are worth seeing but you should definitely find a way to reach the mountains. It is also interesting to see the Katun River. Its water has a strange turquoise color, which is why it is often called Katun turquoise. 

There is one more unusual place near Chemal village: Patmos Abbey, situated on tiny Patmos Island. It appeared there in the nineteenth century. Now some monks live there. To get to Patmos, you must cross Katun river by walking on a beautiful bridge.

Anything else you would like to add?

I love traveling around Russia because I am sure that there so many wonders even where we don't expect to find anything interesting. I am sure that in the Altai the greatest wonders are not high mountains or buildings, but its pure nature and the beauty that surrounds you. When you get there, you can feel this beauty and approach it. I think that now we live in a very cruel world, but sometimes we need to relax and to have a short break, to get closer to nature, to simplify life, to see and to feel the beauty of our world. Altai is a place where you can feel it in a very special way.

Website: https://www.instagram.com/katerina_novikova/

Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of our Books

Murder and the Muse
December 12, 2016

Murder and the Muse

KGB Chief Andropov has tapped Matyushkin to solve a brazen jewel heist from Picasso’s wife at the posh Metropole Hotel. But when the case bleeds over into murder, machinations, and international intrigue, not everyone is eager to see where the clues might lead.

Russian Rules
November 16, 2011

Russian Rules

From the shores of the White Sea to Moscow and the Northern Caucasus, Russian Rules is a high-speed thriller based on actual events, terrifying possibilities, and some really stupid decisions.

How Russia Got That Way
September 20, 2025

How Russia Got That Way

A fast-paced crash course in Russian history, from Norsemen to Navalny, that explores the ways the Kremlin uses history to achieve its ends.

Survival Russian
February 01, 2009

Survival Russian

Survival Russian is an intensely practical guide to conversational, colloquial and culture-rich Russian. It uses humor, current events and thematically-driven essays to deepen readers’ understanding of Russian language and culture. This enlarged Second Edition of Survival Russian includes over 90 essays and illuminates over 2000 invaluable Russian phrases and words.

Bears in the Caviar
May 01, 2015

Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar is a hilarious and insightful memoir by a diplomat who was “present at the creation” of US-Soviet relations. Charles Thayer headed off to Russia in 1933, calculating that if he could just learn Russian and be on the spot when the US and USSR established relations, he could make himself indispensable and start a career in the foreign service. Remarkably, he pulled it of.

A Taste of Chekhov
December 24, 2022

A Taste of Chekhov

This compact volume is an introduction to the works of Chekhov the master storyteller, via nine stories spanning the last twenty years of his life.

Marooned in Moscow
May 01, 2011

Marooned in Moscow

This gripping autobiography plays out against the backdrop of Russia's bloody Civil War, and was one of the first Western eyewitness accounts of life in post-revolutionary Russia. Marooned in Moscow provides a fascinating account of one woman's entry into war-torn Russia in early 1920, first-person impressions of many in the top Soviet leadership, and accounts of the author's increasingly dangerous work as a journalist and spy, to say nothing of her work on behalf of prisoners, her two arrests, and her eventual ten-month-long imprisonment, including in the infamous Lubyanka prison. It is a veritable encyclopedia of life in Russia in the early 1920s.

White Magic
June 01, 2021

White Magic

The thirteen tales in this volume – all written by Russian émigrés, writers who fled their native country in the early twentieth century – contain a fair dose of magic and mysticism, of terror and the supernatural. There are Petersburg revenants, grief-stricken avengers, Lithuanian vampires, flying skeletons, murders and duels, and even a ghostly Edgar Allen Poe.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955